Package

ABSTRACT

A package for a product having at least a first face and a second face. The first face is intended to be displayed to a consumer when the package is displayed for sale. The first face has a first face area and includes first indicia having a first area and representing the name of the product or the product manufacturer. The first face also has second indicia having a second area including an equity building advertising message for the product in the package. The second area of the second indicia is greater than the first area of the first indicia on the first face of the package.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to an improved package.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Consumer and other products are displayed and advertised in manydifferent ways. Over the years, there have been numerous attempts tomaximize consumer awareness of such products in order to increase salesof the products. One way to increase consumer awareness is to advertisethe product. This can, and has, been done by many different means,including, but not limited to television, radio, print and other massmedia, coupons, in-store advertising, direct mailing and e-mailing,catalogs and web site links and advertisements.

In other instances, the products may be placed in stores or shown onwebsites in ways to increase the likelihood that a consumer will see theproduct and purchase it. For example, retailers may place a particularproduct in a particular location of the store (e.g. the end of the aisleor along the check-out line) in an attempt to increase the product'svisibility to the consumer.

Yet another way to entice consumers to purchase and try a particularproduct may be to provide the product with unique packaging. Suchpackaging may be unique in terms of its shape, functionality, appearanceor any other aspect that may attract a potential buyer of the product.One proven method to gain and sustain product sales is to use uniqueidentifiers on the product packaging, such as trademarks and/or tradedress.

However, despite the numerous and continuing attempts to make consumersaware of products and to maintain and/or increase sales of suchproducts, there still exists a need to provide products with an improvedmethod for advertising such products and/or the benefits of suchproducts.

There also exists a need to provide an improved method for arranging anumber of the same products or an array of similar products on a shelfor other storage device.

There also exists a need to provide an improved method for advertising aproduct or array of products on a website.

There also exists a need to provide an improved package includingadvertising the benefits of the product provided therein.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In order to address the above-mentioned needs in the industry, thepresent invention provides a package for a product having at least afirst face and a second face. The first face is intended to be displayedto a consumer when the package is displayed for sale. The first face hasa first face area and includes first indicia having a first area andrepresenting the name of the product or the product manufacturer. Thefirst face also has second indicia having a second area including anequity building advertising message for the product in the package. Thesecond area of the second indicia is greater than the first area of thefirst indicia on the first face of the package.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is an isometric view of a prior art package with a section cutaway to show the product therein.

FIG. 2 is an isometric view of one example of an embodiment of thepresent invention with a section cut away to show the product therein.

FIG. 3 is a plan view of one embodiment of a package of the presentinvention.

FIG. 4 is a plan view of an alternative embodiment of a package of thepresent invention.

FIG. 5 is a plan view of an alternative embodiment of a package of thepresent invention.

FIG. 6 is a plan view of an alternative embodiment of a package of thepresent invention with a portion cut away to show the contents of thepackage.

FIG. 7 is a plan view of an alternative embodiment of a package of thepresent invention with a portion cut away to show the contents of thepackage.

FIG. 8 is a plan view of one embodiment of the present invention showinga number of packages on a storage or display unit.

FIG. 9 is a plan view of an alternative embodiment of the presentinvention showing a number of packages on a storage or display unit.

FIG. 10 is a plan view of an embodiment of the present invention showinga number of packages on a storage or display unit.

FIG. 11 is a plan view of an embodiment of the present invention showinga number of packages on a storage or display unit.

FIG. 12 is a plan view of an array of packages on a storage or displayunit.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

As noted above, the present invention is directed to improved packages,arrays of packages and methods for advertising products. The followingterms used herein have the following meanings.

“Array of packages”, as used herein, refers to an arrangement of atleast two packages.

“Brand logo”, as used herein, refers to indicia associated with aparticular product or product line. The brand logo may include anycombination of words, symbols, pictures or other graphic or textualelements.

“Brand name”, as used herein, refers to a name for a product or productline. Generally, such brand names are trade names or trademarks, but canalso include generic or descriptive language.

“Consumer”, as used herein, refers to any person that purchases, makes adecision to purchase a product or is contemplating making a purchase ofa product. Typically, the Consumer will be the end user of the product,but the definition of consumer, as used herein is not so limited.

“Equity building advertising”, as used herein, refers to a message aboutone or more of the benefits of a product. The equity buildingadvertising can include letters, text, words, graphics, symbols,pictures or any other indicia related to the benefits of a product.

“Package”, as used herein, refers to any covering material or wrapper inwhich at least a portion of a product is placed for shipping, storageand/or sale.

“Product”, as used herein, refers to any object, material or substancethat is intended for use by a consumer.

“Promotional message”, as used herein, refers to a message that providesa consumer with information about a product other than the product onwhich the message is provided. At times, such promotional messages arenot provided on the product or product packaging itself, but generallyin close proximity to the product, such as, for example on the samestore shelf or alternatively, provided via a separate medium, such as acoupon, a print, radio, internet or television advertisement or anotherform of a special offer, such as, for example, a prize, a give-awayitem, an offer to sell an item or items at a discount, etc. Suchpromotional messages differ from equity building advertising in thatpromotional messages do not provide information about one or morebenefits of the product that includes the promotional message.

“SKU”, as used herein is a stock keeping unit. Stock keeping units areused to uniquely identify particular products. Generally, each productsold by a retailer will have a separate and unique SKU. Thus, alldifferent sizes, forms, package counts, etc. will typically have aunique SKU. Often the SKU is provided as a series of numbers and/or abar code and is often associated with the UPC of a product.

“UPC”, as used herein refers to a universal product code. UPCs are codesintended to help identify the manufacturer of a product. Accordingly,each manufacturer has a unique UPC. Often, UPCs are on packages in theform of a series of numbers and/or a bar code.

Package

As noted above, the present invention includes an improved package forproducts. As with most packages, the package of the present inventionprovides a means for storing, shipping, protecting, containing and/ordisplaying the product or products that are disposed within or partiallywithin the package. Packages are also used to identify the product(s)therein and provide the consumer with general information about theproduct. The package of the present invention provides an improvement toprior art packaging in that it includes an equity building advertisingmessage for the product that is disposed in the package. In certainembodiments, the package may include equity building advertising forproducts that are not in the particular package itself, but otherproducts of similar nature (e.g. the same product in a differentpackage, a similar product with a different aesthetic feature, sheetcount or volume, products with the same brand name and/or products fromthe same manufacturer). In alternative embodiments, the package mayinclude an equity building advertising message for products from adifferent manufacturer, having a different brand name, being dissimilarin nature and/or having no connection with the product in the packageincluding the equity building advertising. Further still, the packagemay include an equity building advertising message that relates to theadvantages of two or more products, including messages that describe thebenefits of using the products together or otherwise in conjunction witheach other.

An example of a prior art package is shown in FIG. 1. A portion of thepackage 1 is cut away to show the products 2 that are disposed withinthe package 1. The package 1 includes a display panel 3 that is intendedto be oriented such that the consumer can see the display panel 3 whenthe package 1 is displayed for sale. This particular package 1 alsoincludes a brand name and/or brand logo 4. The brand name/brand logo 4is prominent on the display panel 3 and is intended to help the consumeridentify the particular product 2 within the package 1 and possibly themanufacturer or distributor of the product 2. The package 1 may alsoinclude decorative indicia 5 and/or technical or other writteninformation 6 about the product 2, itself. Typically, the brandname/brand logo 4 is the most prominent indicia on the display panel 3and any other decorative indicia 5 or information 6 is of lesserprominence and or provided on portions of the package other than thedisplay panel 3, such as, for example, at least one side panel 7, a toppanel 8, a bottom panel 9 or a back panel 10. (Of course, not allpackages will be designed so as to include all of the panels of aparallelepiped, but generally packages for consumer products willinclude at least one display panel 3 and portions that are not generallyintended to be displayed to the consumer while displayed for sale.)

FIG. 2 is an example of one embodiment of the present invention. Asshown, the package 20 has a cut away section showing the products 22disposed within the package 20. The package 20 includes a display panel24 that is intended to be oriented such that the consumer can see thedisplay panel 24 when the package 20 is displayed for sale. The package20 shown also includes a rear panel 26, a top panel 28, a bottom panel30 and side panels 32. However, the package of the present inventionneed not be of any particular size, shape or geometry. In any case, thepackage 20 will have a display panel 24, as noted above, that isintended to be oriented such that the consumer can see the display panel24 when the package 20 is displayed for sale. For packages withnon-planar surfaces, the display panel 24 is that portion of the package20 that the consumer sees when looking at the package 20 on display forsale without removing the package 20 from its display and under typicalshopping conditions for the particular product involved. Thus, forcertain consumer product packages 20, the display panel 24 will be thatportion of the package 20 that is seen by the consumer while the package20 is on a store shelf somewhere between the ground and about 10 feetabove the ground and when the consumer is viewing the package 20 whilelocated within about 25 feet of the package 20. (Examples of the package20 being displayed on typical shelving of a retail store are shown, forexample in FIGS. 3 and 4. However, the package 20 may be displayed inany suitable manner and normal viewing conditions may be different thanthose described above and/or shown in the Figures. Thus, the abovedescription and the figures should not be construed as in any waylimiting to the scope of the invention, but rather as examples of how aconsumer might view the display panel 24 of a package 20.)

The particular package 20 shown in FIG. 2 includes a brand name and/orbrand logo 34. The brand name/brand logo 34 is disposed on the displaypanel 24 and is intended to help the consumer identify the particularproduct 22 within the package 20 and possibly the manufacturer ordistributor of the product 22. However, in some cases, the package 20may not include any brand name/brand logo 34 on the display panel 24.The package 20 also includes an equity building advertising message 36(and thus, may also be referred to herein as an “equity building package20”). In certain embodiments, the package 20 may also include decorativeindicia 38 and/or technical or other written information 40 about theproduct 22, itself or other information relevant to the end user of theproduct 22.

As shown in FIG. 2, the brand name/brand logo 34 is not the mostprominent indicia on the display panel 24, but is of lesser prominencethan the equity building advertising message 36. In fact, in thisparticular embodiment, the equity building advertising message 36 is ofgreater prominence than any other indicia on the display panel 24. Interms of prominence, there are a number of factors that can be involvedwith elevating or diminishing the prominence of a feature on a package,including, but not limited to the size of the indicia, the colors used,the texture, the area of coverage dedicated to the particular indiciaversus other indicia, the location of the indicia on the package ordisplay panel, the aesthetic appeal of the indicia versus other indiciaor parts of the package and/or the message provided by the particularindicia.

In certain embodiments, as shown for example, in FIG. 2, display panel24 will have a display panel surface area 42 determined by the length Lof the display panel 24 of the package 20 and the height H of thedisplay panel 24 of the package 20. (Of course, packages with othershapes will have different measurements that go into determining theoverall display panel surface area 42, but in each case suchmeasurements should be easily determined by one of skill in the art. Forpackages with non-planar display surfaces, the display panel isconsidered to be the portion of the package that the consumer isintended to see when the package is displayed for sale.)

As shown in the embodiment of the invention shown in FIG. 2, the package20 of the present invention may include an equity building advertisingmessage 36 that is more prominent than the brand name or brand logo 34in terms of the area that the equity building advertising message 36covers on the display panel 24 versus the area of the display panel 24that the brand name or brand logo 34 covers. For example, it may bedesirable for the area of the display panel 24 covered by the equitybuilding advertising message 36 (hereinafter “equity area” 44) to begreater than the area of the display panel 24 covered by the brand nameand/or brand logo 34 (hereinafter “brand name/logo area” 46). The equityarea 44 is the entire area of the display panel 24 that is covered byindicia related to the equity building advertising message 36, includingall text, graphics and background copy that relates to the equitybuilding advertising message 36. In FIG. 2, the equity area 44 is theentire area encompassed by the line indicated by the number 44. Thebrand name/logo area 46 is the area of the display panel 24 that iscovered by indicia related to the brand name and/or brand logo 34. InFIG. 2, the brand name/logo area 46 is shown by the dotted linesurrounding the brand name/brand logo indicia 34.

In one example, the equity area 44 may be at least about 50% of the areaof the display panel surface area 42. In other embodiments, the equityarea 44 may be at least about 60%, at least about 70%, at least about75%, at least about 85% or any percentage greater than about 50% of thedisplay panel surface area 42. Likewise, it may be desirable for thebrand name/logo area 46 be less than about 50%, less than about 40%,less than about 30%, less than about 25%, less than about 15% or anyother percentage less than about 50% of the display panel surface area42. It may also be desirable that the equity area 44, or the area of theequity building advertising message 36, is greater than the brandname/logo area 46. In alternative embodiments, it may be desirable thatthe equity area 44 be at least about twice as large as the brandname/logo area 46, at least about 3 times as large as the brandname/logo area 46, at least about five times as large as the brandname/logo area 46, at least about 10 times as large as the brandname/logo area 46, or greater.

The package 20 of the present invention may include more than one panelor face that has the equity building advertising message 36, asdescribed above. In fact, it may be desirable in certain situations toprovide the package 20 with more than one panel or face having generallythe same look and indicia. For example, on a package like the one shownin FIG. 2, it may be desirable for the rear panel 26 to be identical toor nearly identical to the display panel 24. This can help ensure thatthe equity building advertising message 36 of the display panel 24 isdisplayed to the consumer even if the package 20 is purposefully ormistakenly oriented such that the display panel 24 is not facing theconsumer when displayed for sale. It can also help ensure that theequity building advertising message 36 is displayed even if thepackage(s) 20 are not displayed in an orderly fashion, such as, forexample, at the end of a shopping day when the packages 20 are not fullystocked and/or may have been re-oriented by shoppers. In otherembodiments, any other panel(s) or face(s) of the package 20, such as,for example, the top panel 28, the bottom panel 30, and/or either orboth of the side panels 32 may also include the same or similar equitybuilding advertising message 36 as the display panel 24. The equitybuilding advertising message 36 on such other panel(s) can be presentedas described above (i.e. having the same or similar proportions ofcoverage of the panels as set forth above), or may be presented in adifferent manner or with different indicia.

The equity building advertising message 36, the brand name and/or logo34, any decorative indicia 38, written information 40 or any otheradvertising message, promotional message or other aesthetic indicia maybe provided on the package 20 in any suitable way. For example, thedisplay panel 24 of the package 20 may have the equity buildingadvertising message 36 and any other indicia printed on the inner orouter surface of the material 48 making up the package 20. In otherembodiments, the equity building advertising message 36 and/or any otherindicia may be provided on a separate sticker or label 50 or materialthat is temporarily or permanently joined to the display panel 24 of thepackage 20 (one example of which is shown in FIG. 3). In otherembodiments, the package 20 may be provided with an insert 52 that isprovided within the package 20 and can be seen through an opening 54 inthe package 20 (one example of which is shown in FIG. 4) or through thematerial 48 of the package 20 (one example of which is shown in FIG. 5).In yet other embodiments, the equity building advertising message 36 maybe provided on one or more of the products 22 within the package 20 (oneexample of which is shown in FIG. 6) or on primary packaging 56 withinwhich the product(s) are packaged and then over-wrapped by the package20 (one example of which is shown in FIG. 7).

The package 20 shown in FIG. 2 represents a package of rolled paperproducts, such as paper towels or bath tissue. However, the package 20of the present invention is in no way limited to a particular type orcategory of products. Thus, the package 20 can be practiced with anyproduct therein. For example, the package 20 may include products suchas facial tissue, bath tissue, towels, paper towels, hair care products,food products, laundry products, fabric care products, oral careproducts, pharmaceuticals, over the counter medications, feminine careproducts, diapers, incontinence products, anti-persperant/deodorantproducts, pet food, cosmetics, batteries, coffee, food storagecontainers, garbage bags, surface cleaning products, soap, wipes orother consumer products. Further, the package 20 of the presentinvention may include a single product or several products (e.g. amulti-pack of paper towels or bath tissue.) Further, the package 20 ofthe present invention may include a number of different products, eitherof the same general type or class (e.g. paper towels with differentprints or roll sheet counts, etc.) or of related products (e.g. a tubeof toothpaste packaged with a toothbrush) or products that arecompletely unrelated to each other (e.g. a package of tissue with a handcleanser).

The package 20 of the present invention may be made of any suitablematerial and may be of any shape or size. Although it is desirable incertain instances that the package 20 has at least one generally planarface, typically the display panel 24, such should not be considered arequirement of the present invention. Further, there is no requirementthat the package 20 have any particular number of sides. In fact, thepackage 20 may be cylindrical, conical, spherical or any other geometricshape or combination of shapes.

In some instances, it may be desirable for the package 20 to have adisplay panel 24 that is at least about 20 cm in length and a height ofat least about 20 cm. In alternative embodiments, it may be desirablethat the package 20 has a display panel 24 of at least about 30 cm, atleast about 40 cm, at least about 50 cm or at least about 75 cm inlength. Likewise, it may be desirable that the package 20 has a displaypanel 24 of at least about 30 cm, at least about 40 cm, at least about50 cm or at least about 75 cm in length. Any combination of the abovenoted dimensions or any other dimensions may be used in the package 20of the present invention. However, one advantage of the package 20 ofthe present invention is that it provides a medium for placing at leastthe equity building advertising message 36, and thus, larger displaypanels 24 can provide the package 20 with a billboard-like effect fordisplaying the equity building advertising message 36. This isespecially impactful when the package(s) 20 are displayed in an array ofpackages or along side or surrounded by other packages.

Array of Packages

The present invention also includes an array of packages for storingand/or displaying products. One advantage of the array of packages ofthe present invention is that it provides a way to uniquely display thepackages in a way that may help increase the visibility of the packageson display. The array of the present invention may also provide animproved means for attracting the attention of a potential consumer.Additionally, the array of packages of the present invention may providean improved means for informing the consumer about the benefits of aparticular product that may help build the product's brand equity. Inyet other embodiments, the array of the present invention may provide ameans for informing the consumer about the benefits of a particularproduct line that may help build the product line's brand equity.

As noted above, an array of packages, as used herein, refers to anarrangement of two or more packages. The array can include packages thatare all the same in terms of size, shape, the product within thepackage, the package SKU or any other feature of the package, or mayinclude packages of different sizes, shapes, products within thepackage, the package SKU or any other feature of the package. Thepackages may be arranged in a free-standing condition (i.e. standingand/or stacked on the ground or floor without any display structureholding them) or may displayed on a structure such as a shelf, pallet,hanger, in a cabinet, or any other structure designed to or used forstoring and/or displaying the packages for sale. The array of packagescan be located such that they are distant or removed from other productsand/or packages or may be located next to or intermingled with otherproducts or packages of the same or different manufacturer.

In one embodiment of the present invention, as shown in FIG. 8, forexample, the array of packages 60 is disposed on a shelving unit 62. Theindividual packages of the array of packages 60 include packages 20, 64,65, 66, 67 and 68. In the particular embodiment shown in FIG. 8, thearray of packages 60 includes a number of different packages 20, 64, 65,66, 67 and 68 having the same brand name and/or brand logo 34. Incertain embodiments, the array of packages 60 includes differentpackages having the same or similar products therein. For example, thearray of packages 60 shown in FIG. 8 could represent an array ofpackages 60 including paper products such as paper towels, bath tissueor facial tissue, although any other product or products could also bein the array 60. The different packages 20, 64, 65, 66, 67 and 68 couldbe different size packages, packages with different amounts (e.g. numberof rolls or sheets) of product in the package, packages includingproducts with different aesthetic, olfactory, structural or chemicalfeatures and/or packages with different SKUs and/or UPCs. Further, thearray of packages 60 of the present invention may include a number ofdifferent packages including products that are not of the same type, butrather are related products (e.g. a tube of toothpaste packaged with atoothbrush) or products that are completely unrelated to each other(e.g. a package of tissue with a hand cleanser).

As shown in FIG. 8, the array of packages 60 includes at least package20 including the equity building advertising message 36, as set forthabove. In the particular array of packages 60 shown, there are twopackages 20 that have the equity building advertising message 36, butany number of the packages in the array of packages 60 can include themessage 36. Also, as shown, the packages 20 having the equity buildingadvertising message 36 are designed such that the equity buildingadvertising message 36 is disposed on the display panel 24 such that theequity building advertising message 36 can be seen by a consumer lookingat the package 20, as it is displayed for sale.

The equity building package(s) 20 included in the array of packages 60shown in FIGS. 8 and 9 have the characteristics of the packages 20described above. That is, the brand name/brand logo 34 is not the mostprominent indicia on the display panel 24, but is of lesser prominencethan the equity building advertising message 36. In fact, in theembodiments shown in FIGS. 8 and 9, the equity building advertisingmessage 36 is of greater prominence than any other indicia on thedisplay panel 24. As noted above, in terms of prominence, there are anumber of factors that can be involved with elevating or diminishing theprominence of a feature on a package, including, but not limited to thesize of the indicia, the colors used, the texture, the area of coveragededicated to the particular indicia versus other indicia, the locationof the indicia on the package or display panel, the aesthetic appeal ofthe indicia versus other indicia or parts of the package and/or themessage provided by the particular indicia.

As noted above, the equity building package(s) 20 of the presentinvention may include an equity building advertising message 36 that ismore prominent than the brand name or brand logo 34 in terms of the areathat the equity building advertising message 36 covers on the displaypanel 24 versus the area of the display panel 24 that the brand name orbrand logo 34 covers. For example, it may be desirable for the equityarea 44 (the area of the equity building advertising message 36) to begreater than the brand name and/or brand logo area 46. In one example,the equity area 44 may be at least about 50% of the area of the displaypanel surface area 42. In other embodiments, the equity area 44 may beat least about 60%, at least about 70%, at least about 75%, at leastabout 85% or any percentage greater than about 50% of the display panelsurface area 42. Likewise, it may be desirable for the brand name/logoarea 46 be less than about 50%, less than about 40%, less than about30%, less than about 25%, less than about 15% or any other percentageless than about 50% of the display panel surface area 42. In alternativeembodiments, it may be desirable that the equity area 44 be at leastabout twice as large as the brand name/logo area 46, at least about 3times as large as the brand name/logo area 46, at least about five timesas large as the brand name/logo area 46, at least about 10 times aslarge as the brand name/logo area 46, or greater.

As with the packages described above, the equity building package(s) 20of the present invention may include more than one panel or face thathas the equity building advertising message 36. In fact, as noted above,it may be desirable in certain situations to provide the equity buildingpackage 20 with more than one panel or face having generally the samelook and indicia. For example, on equity building packages 20 like thoseshown in FIGS. 8 and 9, it may be desirable for the rear panel 26 to beidentical to or nearly identical to the display panel 24. This can helpensure that the equity building advertising message 36 of the displaypanel 24 is displayed to the consumer even if the equity buildingpackage 20 is purposefully or mistakenly oriented such that the displaypanel 24 is not facing the consumer when displayed for sale. It can alsohelp ensure that the equity building advertising message 36 is displayedeven if the equity building package(s) 20 are not displayed in anorderly fashion, such as, for example, at the end of a shopping day whenthe display shelves 62 are not fully stocked and/or the packages mayhave been re-oriented by shoppers. As with the packages described above,the equity building package(s) 20 may have other panel(s) or face(s),such as, for example, the top panel 28, the bottom panel 30, and/oreither or both of the side panels 32 that also include the same orsimilar equity building advertising message 36 as the display panel 24.

The equity building advertising message 36, the brand name and/or logo34, any decorative indicia 38, written information 40 or any otheradvertising message, promotional message or other aesthetic indicia maybe provided on the equity building package(s) 20 in any suitable way,such as, for example, the ways and means described above with respect tothe package 20 shown in FIG. 2. Further, as noted above, the package(s)20 of the present invention or any other packages of the array ofpackages 60 may be made of any suitable material and may be of any shapeand/or size. Also, any of the packages in the array 60 may have displaypanels 24 that include, but are not limited to those dimensions setforth above.

As noted above, the array of packages 60 shown in FIGS. 8 and 9 arerepresentative of arrays of packages that include a number of differentpackages having the same brand name/brand logo 34. The arrays 60 includepackages of different sizes. The different sized packages may includeproducts of different sizes or different numbers of products in eachpackage. For example, if the products are rolled paper products, thepackages may all include a single brand or line-up of bath tissue orpaper towel, but may include different roll counts, roll sizes,substrates, plies, printing on the product or color of the product,scents, price, indicia on the product or package, usage instructions orother differences. Generally, such different packages will havedifferent SKU numbers and/or different UPCs.

In the array of packages 60 shown in FIG. 8, the array 60 includespackages 20, 64, 65, 66, 67 and 68. Packages 20 include the equitybuilding advertising message 36. The size and make-up of the equitybuilding advertising message 36 on the packages 20 can be as set forthabove. For example, at least the display panel 24 of the packages 20 mayinclude an equity building advertising message 36 that is more prominentthan the brand name/brand logo 34 on the display panel 24 of thepackages 20, as described herein. The rest of the packages, packages 64,65, 66, 67 and 68 do not include the equity building advertising message36. However, such packages could include the equity building advertisingmessage 36 as well as any other promotional, instructional or aestheticfeatures desired. In the particular embodiment shown, the packages 20including the equity building advertising message 36 or the equitybuilding packages 20 are located on the display shelf 62 such that atleast one of the equity building packages 20 is adjacent at least onepackage from the same product line-up (e.g. having the same brandname/brand logo 34) with graphics or indicia that are different than thegraphics and/or indicia on the equity building packages 20. In analternative embodiment, the array of packages could be such that theequity building package(s) 20 are separated from the other packages ofthe same product line-up, but still within view of such other packages.In yet other embodiments, one or more of the equity building packages 20could be adjacent packages from the same product line-up on at least twosides, at least three sides or completely surrounded by such otherproducts.

In the embodiment of the present invention shown in FIG. 9, the array ofpackages 60 includes at least one equity building package 20 and atleast one package 70 that is the same in all respects to the equitybuilding package, but does not include the equity building advertisingmessage 36 on the display panel 24. Thus, for example, the packages 20and 70 would be the same SKU and include the same products, but theequity building package 20 would include the equity building advertisingmessage 36 and the package 70 would not, at least on the display panel24. In other embodiments, the array of packages could include the equitybuilding package 20 and the package 70 which is similar in all respects,as noted above, but the package 70 does include the equity buildingadvertising message 36 on the display panel 24. However, in suchembodiments, the equity building advertising message 36 on the displaypanel 24 is of lesser prominence than the equity building advertisingmessage 36 on the display panel of the equity building package 20. Ofcourse, the array of packages 60 in any case could include any number ofother packages, such as packages 64, 65, 66, 67 and 68. As shown, suchpackages include the same brand name/brand logo 34 as the equitybuilding package(s) 20, but are different in some way, for example,different sizes, substrates, plies, printing on the product or color ofthe product, scents, price, indicia on the product or package, usageinstructions or other differences. Typically, such different packageswould have different SKU numbers and/or different UPCs.

The array of packages 60 of the present invention may be provided as adisplay of packages separate from other packages not in the array or maybe located within a display containing packages other than those in thearray of packages 60 of the present invention, as shown, for example, inFIG. 10. In FIG. 10, the array of packages 60 of the present inventionis located on a display, shelves 62, with other packages 80 that are notpart of the array 60. In the particular embodiment shown, the packages80 that are not part of the array of packages 60 of the presentinvention include packages having a different brand name/brand logo 34than the brand name/brand logo 34 of the packages 20, 65, 67 and 68 ofthe array of the packages 60 of the present invention. In the particularshelf setup shown in FIG. 10, the packages 80 represent packages ofproduct that are similar in nature to the packages 20, 65, 67 and 68 ofthe array of packages 60 of the present invention. Thus, for example,the packages 80 could be another manufacturer's brand of paper towels ifthe array of packages 60 included packages of paper towels.Alternatively, the packages 80 could include any number of differentproducts, including products of the same general nature, i.e. paperproducts but not paper towels, or could be completely different productsfrom the products in the packages 20, 65, 67 and 68 of the array ofpackages 60 shown. Further, unlike what is shown in FIG. 10, thepackages 80 that are not part of the array of packages 60 of the presentinvention could be any number of different brands and FIG. 10 should notbe construed to limit the particular arrangement of the array ofpackages 60 of the present invention or the surrounding packages 80.Rather, the figure is just one exemplary embodiment used to helpillustrate the impact of the equity building package 20 and the array ofpackages 60 including the equity building package 20.

Method of Displaying an Array of Packages

The present invention also includes a method of displaying an array ofpackages including one or more products therein. In particular, themethod includes displaying an array of packages in a retail or wholesalesetting. The method includes providing an array of packages including atleast one first equity building package having a first display panelincluding certain indicia, wherein the first display panel is intendedto be displayed to the consumer when the package is displayed for sale.The method also includes providing at least one second package thatincludes indicia that are different than the indicia on the displaypanel of the equity building package.

In one embodiment, as shown in FIG. 11, the method for displaying anarray of packages 60 includes providing at least one first package 100,such as one of the package(s) 20 of FIGS. 2-10, including at least oneproduct 22 therein. The first package 100 has at least a first displayface 102. The first display face 102 has a first display area 104 andincludes first indicia 106 representing brand name/brand logo 108 of theproduct 22 and or the manufacturer of the product 22. The first package100 also includes second indicia 110 including an equity buildingadvertising message 112. The second indicia 110 of the first package 100cover more of the area 104 of the first display face 102 than the firstindicia 106. The method also includes providing at least one secondpackage 114 (such as, for example one or more of packages 64, 65, 66,67, 68 and/or 70 as shown in FIGS. 8 and 9). The second package 114includes at least one product 116 therein and has a second display face118. The second display face 118 has a second display face area 120 andincludes the first indicia 106 of the first package 100.

In one embodiment of the present invention, the array of packages 60includes a first package 100 including a first display face 102 thatincludes first indicia 106, as set forth above and second indicia 110that does not include the equity building advertising message 112. Inanother embodiment, the second display face 118 second package 114 doesnot include the equity building advertising message 112.

The method of the present invention may also includes locating at leastone first package 100 close enough to at least one second package 114such that both the first package 100 and the second package 114 can bothbe seen by the consumer at the same time. In certain embodiments, it maybe desirable that at least one first package 100 is located adjacent atleast one second package 114, as is shown in FIG. 11, but the packages100 and 114 need not be adjacent each other in all embodiments. It mayalso be desirable to provide an array of packages 60 wherein at leastone first package 100 is located such that at least two sides of thefirst package 100 are adjacent one or more second packages 114. This toois shown in FIG. 11, wherein the first package 100 has a right side 122,a left side 124, a top side 126, a bottom side 128 and a back side 130.

In one embodiment of the present invention, an array of packages 60 isprovided, as stated above, including at least one first package 100 andat least one second package 114. In this embodiment, the first package100 has a first SKU. The second package 114 that is provided has asecond SKU that is different from the first SKU. In certain embodiments,the first product 22 in the first package 100 may be the same as thesecond product 116 in the second package 114. In such cases, the firstpackage 100 and the second package 114 with different SKUs willgenerally differ in at least one way. For example, the first package 100and the second package 114 may have one or more of the followingdifferences: product size or number or products in the package, amountof material on the product, indicia or graphics on the product, color ofthe product, product usage instructions or the like. In otherembodiments, the first product 22 in the first package 100 may bephysically or chemically different in some way from the second product116 in the second package 114. For example, the first product 22 couldbe a base or standard quality product and the second product could be apremium or economy product.

In yet another embodiment of the present invention, a method of rotatingan array of packages 60 is provided. The method includes providing atleast one first package 100, such as one of the package(s) 20 of FIGS.2-10, including at least one product 22 therein. The first package 100has at least a first display face 102. The first display face 102 has afirst display area 104 and includes first indicia 106 representing brandname/brand logo 108 of the product 22 and or the manufacturer of theproduct 22. The first package 100 also includes second indicia 110including an equity building advertising message 112. The second indicia110 of the first package 100 cover more of the area 104 of the firstdisplay face 102 than the first indicia 106. The method also includesproviding at least one second package 114 (such as, for example one ormore of packages 64, 65, 66, 67, 68 and/or 70 as shown in FIGS. 8 and9). The second package 114 includes at least one product 116 therein andhas a second display face 118. The second display face 118 has a seconddisplay face area 120 and includes the first indicia 106 of the firstpackage 100. The method also includes replacing at least one of thefirst packages 100 with a third package 132 (as shown in FIG. 12). Thethird package 132 includes a third display panel 134 having an area andincluding third indicia 136 that includes at least the brand name/brandlogo 108 of the first package 100. In certain embodiments, the thirdindicia 136 may also include the first indicia 106 of the first package100. However, in such embodiments, the first indicia 106 covers at leastas much area of the third display panel 134 as the second indicia 110.

In certain embodiments of the present invention, the method of rotationof the array of packages 60 includes replacing at least one firstpackage 100 with at least one third package 132 that includes thirdindicia 136 that are substantially the same as the second indicia 110 ofthe second package(s) 114. That is, the third package(s) 132 and thesecond package(s) will all have a similar look, such as is shown in FIG.12. The array of packages 60, as shown in FIG. 12, where all of thepackages of a particular product line are similar, is what is commonlyused in retail settings today.

It may also be desirable to provide an array of packages 60 with similarindicia across the line-up, such as the line-up shown in FIG. 12 priorto and/or after providing the first package 100 in the array. (Such anarray could include a “standard” package having a display panelincluding standard indicia thereon, wherein the standard indicia aresubstantially similar to the third indicia.) Thus, the first package(s)100 may be provided only temporarily in the array of packages 60. In oneembodiment, the first packages 100 are replaced with the third packages132 as the first packages 100 are purchased by the consumer. Thus, wherea number of first packages 100 are displayed at one time, thereplacement of the first packages 100 with the third packages 132 willtake place over some period of time, typically greater than 24 hours. Inother embodiments, the first packages 100 are all replaced with thethird packages 132 over a period of time shorter than 24 hours. Thiswould likely be the case if the array of packages 60 were rotated duringa single re-stocking or other similar event. In any case, it iscontemplated that the method of the present invention could beimplemented without having to change the normal distribution system forthe packages of product in the array 60. That is, the packages could beshipped in the normal course of business and there would be no need forany type of business interruption or special equipment to handle themethod of rotating the array of packages 60.

Such a method of rotating the first package(s) 100 in and out of thearray of packages 60 may provide the array of packages 60 with improvedvisibility to the consumer and even an increase in purchase intent. Thiscan be due not only to the change in the packaging in the array ofpackages 60 that makes the packages in the array of packages 60 standout from other packages or arrays of packages, but also may be due tothe equity building advertising message 112 that is provided on thefirst package(s) 100. The equity building advertising message 112 thatis provided on the first package(s) 100 can help provide increasedvisibility of the first package(s) 100 as well as the entire array ofpackages 60 and thus, can provide a means for increasing purchase intentfor the product in the first package 100 as well as the products in anyof the other packages in the array 60. As such, in certain embodiments,the second packages 114 may benefit from or rely on the equity buildingadvertising message 112 of the first package 100 to increase the equityin the product in the second package 114. Likewise, in certainembodiments, the first packages 100 may benefit from or rely on thebrand name/brand logo 108 of the second package 114 to provide anindication of the brand of the product in the first package 100.

As noted above, the first indicia may include a trade name or trademark.Further, the equity building advertising message 112 may includeinformation about the benefits of the product in the package itself, thepackages in the array of packages 60 or any other product. Also, theequity building advertising message 112 may include at least one graphicelement, at least one photographic image, text or any combinationthereof. In certain embodiments, the equity building advertising message112 that is provided on the first package 100 may include a graphic thatincludes a representation of the product in the package 100, andpossibly even a representation of the product in use.

Further, all of the other characteristics and embodiments of the package20 and the array of packages 60 described above in the sections labeled“Package” and “Array of Packages” are applicable to the methods ofdisplaying the array of packages described in this section and thedisclosure in those sections of the specification should be consideredequally applicable to this section and as if it were repeated in detailin this section.

All documents cited in the Detailed Description of the Invention are, inrelevant part, incorporated herein by reference; the citation of anydocument is not to be construed as an admission that it is prior artwith respect to the present invention. To the extent that any meaning ordefinition of a term in this written document conflicts with any meaningor definition of the term in a document incorporated by reference, themeaning or definition assigned to the term in this written documentshall govern.

While particular embodiments of the present invention have beenillustrated and described, it would be obvious to those skilled in theart that various other changes and modifications can be made withoutdeparting from the spirit and scope of the invention. It is thereforeintended to cover in the appended claims all such changes andmodifications that are within the scope of this invention.

1. A package for a product having at least a first face and a second face, the first face intended to be displayed to a consumer when the package is displayed for sale; the first face having a first face area and including first indicia having first area and representing the name of the product or the product manufacturer and second indicia having a second area including an equity building advertising message for the product in the package, wherein the second area of the second indicia is greater than the first area of the first indicia on the first face of the package.
 2. The package of claim 1 wherein the first indicia is trademark or trade name.
 3. The package of claim 1 wherein the second indicia does not include the name of the product or the product manufacturer.
 4. The package of claim 1 wherein the second indicia includes an equity building advertising message that provides information about the benefits of the product in the package.
 5. The package of claim 4 wherein the equity building advertising message includes at least one graphic element.
 6. The package of claim 5 wherein the graphic element includes a photographic image.
 7. The package of claim 5 wherein the graphic element includes a representation of the product included in the package.
 8. The package of claim 7 wherein the graphic element includes a representation of the product included in the package in use.
 9. The package of claim 5 wherein the second indicia further includes at least some text.
 10. The package of claim 9 wherein the text and the graphic element together provide information to the consumer in an attempt to get the consumer to purchase the product.
 11. The package of claim 1 wherein the first area of the first indicia covers less than 40% of the area of the first face area of the package.
 12. The package of claim 1 wherein the first area of the first indicia covers less than 30% of the area of the first face area of the package.
 13. The package of claim 1 wherein the first area of the first indicia covers less than 25% of the area of the first face area of the package.
 14. The package of claim 1 wherein the first area of the first indicia covers less than 15% of the area of the first face area of the package.
 15. The package of claim 1 wherein the first area of the first indicia is greater than about twice the second area of the second indicia.
 16. The package of claim 1 wherein the package includes more than one product.
 17. The package of claim 16 wherein the package is an outer package and the products are packaged in a primary package distinct from the outer package.
 18. The package of claim 16 wherein the products included in the outer package are rolled or stacked paper products.
 19. The package of claim 1 wherein the product is selected from the group of facial tissue, bath tissue, towels, paper towels, hair care products, food products, laundry products, fabric care products, oral care products, pharmaceuticals, over the counter medications, feminine care products, diapers, incontinence products, anti-persperant/deodorant products, pet food, cosmetics, batteries, coffee, food storage containers, garbage bags, surface cleaning products, soap, wipes or other consumer products.
 20. A package for a product comprising: a first face intended to be displayed to a consumer when the package is in a retail outlet and displayed for sale, the first face having a first face area and including first indicia having a first area and representing the name of the product or the product manufacturer and second indicia having a second area including an equity building advertising message for the product in the package, wherein the second area of the second indicia is greater than the first area of the first indicia on the first face of the package; and a second face at least partially opposed to the first face and intended to be disposed away from the consumer when the package is displayed for sale, the second face having a second face area and including third indicia having a third area representing the name of the product or the product manufacturer and fourth indicia having a fourth area including an equity building advertising message for the product in the package, wherein the fourth area of the fourth indicia is greater than the third area of the area third indicia on the second face of the package
 21. The package of claim 20 wherein the first indicia and the second indicia on the first face are substantially the same as the third indicia and the fourth indicia on the second face, respectively.
 22. The package of claim 20 wherein the second indicia does not include the name of the product or the product manufacturer. 